Solutions

We don’t live to eat and make money. We eat and make money to be able to enjoy life. That is what life means, and that is what life is for.

— George Mallory

Failure is easy. Operating a successful business is hard. To stand a chance, you have to be dedicated to doing everything possible to survive.

Failure is easy. Operating a successful business is hard. The Small Business Association reports that half of new businesses fail within the first five years. Only a third make it to ten.

Whether you’re new to business or the next in line to head up the company your grandparents built, success isn’t guaranteed. To stand a chance, you have to be dedicated to doing everything possible to survive. The only guarantee is that you’ll make mistakes. Often, businesses continue to operate despite what they do, not because of it.

Sure, information increases your chances—hence the need for efficient and comprehensive record keeping—but information alone isn’t enough. History is full of business failures. In recent years, we have seen giants such as Enron, Sony, Quaker Oats, and Green Tree Servicing crippled when their leaders relentlessly followed wrong-headed strategies.

According to legend, an IBM executive in the 1960s lost the company millions of dollars in a failed development venture. When CEO Tom Watson Jr. summoned the executive to headquarters, the executive showed up with his letter of resignation. He was sure he’d be fired. Watson responded that he wasn’t firing someone he’d just spent millions of dollars educating. Watson just wanted to make sure his executive had learned the right lessons.

Even smart business people, armed with volumes of data, make expensive mistakes. That’s because data is meaningless without context.

Context Accounting and Consulting provides you with the nuanced analysis you need to identify and overcome obstacles. Context keeps you moving forward until you reach your goals.